Part III, Some Clinical Implications, Chapter 9, The Summary and Analysis

Stern will argue that the neurological and ethological viewpoints provide evidence that a sense of self is most sensitive during its formation. He will identify some patterns that are tied to the emergence of each sense of self and will then speculate on how these forms, when established, are critical to function well down the line. A number of caveats are then reviewed, such as that formative periods are hard to observe, as are pathological developments, without an already isolated sample.

Stern believes that the capacities that tie diverse experiences of the social world together are largely genetically determined. Deficits in these capacities may therefore be genetic as well. Pathologies might result from difficulties translating information from one modality to another. Some evidence suggests that learning-disabled children have these...